“Right now,” Ansil panted, “I would take a Nereid’s help. Brownies are not meant for swimming.”
I nodded my agreement, having never learned to swim, treading water was hard and I kept going under. Thankfully Brehm was strong enough to help hold me up as well as himself.
Suddenly we were surrounded by mottled green men that look very similar to the Nixie that are in the waterways of the Bogs. Each carried a pronged spear, many of them pointed at Brehm. I tried to move between the Nokken and Brehm, but one of them pulls me away, his strong arms holding me above the water. Ansil and Ortheus were also held similarly, though it took two Nokken for each of them to keep them above water.
A large Nokken surfaced, glaring at Brehm, “Why are you Brownies with this waterspawn?” His voice was slightly garbled and difficult to understand.
“Sir, he is a friend, helping us to the Fairy Kingdom,” Ansil answered, showing a odd sense of deferment that I had only seen him show my father.
“Why did you not call us? We would have provided safe passage with the Fairies instead of risking your life with this degenerate?” The Nokken’s disdain for the Selkies was more than obvious.
“Prince Aeces, I apologize for the misunderstanding. We did call to you three days ago, but no one came.” Ortheus’ eyes were downcast as he spoke. “Can you help the four of us to the Fairy Kingdom or to somewhere dry that we can speak more on this?”
The Nokken Prince looked from Ortheus to Brehm, “We will, but this Selkie will be under guard. We do not associate with this untrusty filth of the ocean.”
“Thank you, Prince Aeces. I will come with you without any trouble.” Brehm bowed to the Nokken. If it came to blows, I did not know who would win. Both men were built with muscles to spare, something I hadn’t noticed when Brehm was clothed. But looking at him now, his chest and stomach were chiseled perfection.
Prince Aeces didn’t respond to Brehm, instead he ducked under water and we heard a garbled conversation. A few of the Nokken quickly swam to the bottom of the ocean, returning with large amounts of seaweed that they quickly twisted to form rope chairs. “Please sit in these chairs, it will make it easier for us to carry you.”
Once Ansil, Ortheus, and I were settled, the Nokken took off swimming at a pace much faster than we would have made and the Fairy Isles appeared in the distance. The Nokken swam mainly underwater, as did Brehm, so talking with them wasn’t really possible, and the distance between Ansil, Ortheus, and me in the water meant shouting, so I was left with my thoughts.
The last time I left the Bog, I had screwed things up, first talking with Selkie Lords when Ansil told me not to, then running into the Mhularuka lands and leading them into our Bog. Was I making the same mistake trusting Brehm and his sweet talking? He stirred me in ways that I had only felt with Ansil and Ortheus. They trusted Brehm to protect me on the boat and to get us to the Fairy Islands. et the Nokken, our allies, clearly hated the Selkies. How was I supposed to know who to trust when no one trusted the same people?
I was so confused that it was a relief to reach the nearest Island and push my questions away. I stepped out of the chair and stood in the water that came to my shoulders. “Thank you, Prince Aeces. I appreciate your assistance. I will make sure my brother and Da know of your help.”
The Prince looked at me as if he hadn’t noticed me, “Princess, I didn’t realize you were with them. Why do you have a Selkie in your party?”
“It was our only option to reach the Isles when no one came to the beach. Brehm has been more than a gentleman, saving my life twice.”
The look Aeces gave me clearly showed he did not believe a word I had said and he turns to talk quietly with Ansil and Ortheus, dismissing me and Brehm.
Chapter 15
“Who is this Thea?” Ailar glared at Brehm, his sword pulled out and pointed at the Selkies throat. We had not been waiting long on the Island before a Fairy boat approached us, my brother jumping out as soon as he could.
I tried to put myself between Ailar and Brehm, but one of the Nokken stepped between us, preventing me from moving. Ansil though, was faster than me and set his hand on Ailar’s, stopping any movement towards Brehm.
“My Lord, this is Brehm. A Selkie who risked his life and boat to help us reach you. Please let us rest in the boat and we will tell you the tale of the past few days.”
Ailar looked around the gathering and then inclined his head with the kind of arrogance that only comes from being raised to be better than the rest. “We will rest on the boat and speak there. This Selkie can stay with the Nokken who will guard him until I decide whether he is dangerous or not.”
Brehm glared at Ailar but didn’t speak.
I allowed Ansil to hoist me into the boat and gladly took a blanket from one of the Fairies that had been quietly watching the proceedings. As the warmth seeped into me, I was able to think a bit more clearly.
“Ailar, how did you get here so fast?” I asked.
“That is my doing, Princess,” Prince Aece replied. “When we answered the Selkies call and found you three, we sent a messenger to the Fairy Kingdom since that was where Brehm had said you were headed.”
I nodded my acknowledgement of his words. “Thank you. Do you know why you never received the message that we were waiting?”
The prince’s expression turned dark. “No, I do not know, but I have my suspicions. There is a silent war being waged over the seas. There are some who wish to rule the whole seas and sadly some of my own people are being swayed with the arguments.”
He turned to Ailar, “Sir, I beg you to take care in your travels. I will send a squad to escort you to the Selkie Kingdom.”
“Ailar, you are going to the Selkie Kingdom?” I enquired, slightly perturbed at his reaction to Brehm when he was on his way to the Selkie Kingdom.
He glanced at me, “Yes, Thea. I have business with the King. Then I will head home to prepare for when father passes the crown.” His voice turned sad at the end, we both understood that passing the crown would mean Da is no longer with us.
Brehm cleared his throat. “Would you mind taking a message back for me?”
Ailar turned his glare to Brehm. “That depends. You still have not explained why you are with my sister and her guards.”
Brehm, stood to his full height as he shifted into his human form, thankfully, or not so thankfully from my view, he was standing in deeper water that came to his waist. “I am sorry. Let me introduce myself, I am Prince Brehm, the youngest son of King Aengus.”
I stare at him, shocked. I never would have guessed him as royalty.
“As the youngest of one hundred seals, I have little to no chance of being needed, so I spend my days on my boat. When I saw Ansil looking for transport, I knew that he wouldn’t be safe with the Nereids. So, I offered my boat and skills, warning them the trip would be dangerous.”
“And it was, Ailar,” Ortheus spoke up in his soothing manner. “Nereids attempted to drown Thea and if it were not for Brehm knowing how to breathe for her, she would not be here. Then we ran into the Qalupalik. He destroyed Brehm’s ship, but Brehm brought Thea safely through.”
Ailar looked at the Selkie, assessing what he had heard, then tilted his head. “Thank you Prince Brehm, it appears the Brownies owe you a debt.”
Brehm shook his head and looked at me, “There is no debt. Just please pass a message to my father that I will be away from the courts for a while. It seems I have business in the other realms.”
I flushed at his words and look, especially when I saw Ailar looking from Brehm to me, and then over at Ansil and Ortheus who sat behind me. I was not sure what he saw, but his eyes crinkled in that way that told me he found something humorous.
“I see. Thea, our father will not like this, so tread carefully.” He turned to the Nokken Prince, “Please, could we meet tomorrow at the docks to discuss my travels. I must see that my sister and her companions are taken care of. I also would like to speak with you about the sea troubles
and see if there is something we can do to help.”
“I would be honored, Ailar. Our people have long been allies and I would like to keep it that way,” Aece glared at Brehm, an unspoken challenge in his words.
“I am sure we can work something out. Until tomorrow.” Ailar nodded to the Fairies that were to guide our boat, and the wind picked up, pushing us away from the shore.
“I’ll follow you in the water,” Brehm called up to us.
I giggled at the idea of him getting into our boat as a seal or, even better, naked.
Chapter 16
We pulled up to the docks and I had to laugh when I saw Brehm waiting for us. He stood surrounded by fawning Fairies that barely came up to his thighs. He kept having to shoo them away from his legs so that they didn’t get an accidental-on-purpose glance at his family jewels. Around his waist he had woven some seaweed into a makeshift skirt that was barely decent.
“Fairies,” a male voice called down from the path above. “Give the guy some breathing room.”
A Fairy in dark green leggings and tunic, the color of the needles on the tall trees made his way down the path, carrying a large cloth package. He stopped at the end of the path and stared.
“Oh, never mind ladies! I take that back fawn over him all you want, as long as there is room for me. Boy is he a fine piece of meat.” The Fairy’s eyes never leave Brehm as he daintily made his way over to him. “It is a shame to cover that body, but Ren insists that we be welcoming. She swears that includes clothing, I am not so sure. Oh, I’m Nip. I will guide you to your accommodations.”
I swore Nip didn’t take one breathe through his whole spiel, while he ogled Brehm the whole time. I sidled up to stand next to Brehm as he looked like a young Brownie caught in the Nixie song, dazed and confused.
“Nip, is it? I am sure Brehm is thankful for the clothes. Is there somewhere he can go to… change? Somewhere away from everyone.”
The Fairy shifted from craning his head to take in all of Brehm to look at me. I am short for a Brownie and he must be tall for a Fairy as he towered above the females. Yet neither of us quite reached the Selkie’s waist. I had to admit it was very tempting to find out what was under his skirt.
“Does he have too?” Nip whined good naturedly. “Follow me, there is a sheltered area around the bend that we use for changing, just stay low as I am not sure it would cover all of you.”
I watched the two men walk around the bend, laughing at the size difference. I wondered if Nip would be a gentleman and not try to peek. If my brother and guards were not watching me, I would have been tempted to follow them and try to sneak a look as well.
I turned around to see Ansil and Ortheus grinning. My glare had them bursting into laughter.
“Come on Thea, it is hilarious.” Ortheus said between guffaws.
I shook my head at them, “Wait till I make you wear skirts. We will see who will be laughing.”
The two men shut their mouths and looked at me in fear. “You would not dare!” Ansil sputtered.
“Oh yes I would. Did you forget that at royal weddings, all male members wear the traditional skirt with sword?” I laughed as my brother, Ansil, and Ortheus all looked at each other and gulped.
Ailar recovered first, “Well, it is a good thing I do not plan to marry for some time, and you are too young to consider marriage. So, us men will be safe in our trousers for a while.”
“I, for one, am much more comfortable in trousers or my sealskin,” Brehm chuckled as he returned to us.
“Too bad for us,” Nip stage whispered. “All that muscle and flesh covered up.”
Brehm turned a bright shade of red as we all laughed.
“Nip, stop torturing the poor boy.” A regal woman walked down the path slowly, her blond hair pulled into an intricate arrangement with flowers woven into it. Her dress shimmered with gold specks as she walked. “I am Ren, Queen of the Fairies. Welcome to our Isles.”
The other Fairies all nodded or bowed to her and I found myself wanting to do the same. I had never seen such a beautiful woman, of course my time with women had been limited to the Bog, and Brownies are not ones for dressing up. We preferred function over looks.
“Ren,” Ailar murmured. “May I introduce my sister, Thea, and her guards Ansil and Ortheus. And Prince Brehm of the Selkie Kingdom.”
The Fairies all took a step away from Brehm as if he had the plague. “You have brought one of them to my Isles!” Ren stood to her full height and started to raise up, floating as golden lightning started to flicker around her.
“My Queen,” Brehm kneeled down before her, “I come in peace and do not feel as others of my Kingdom do. Each person has the right to choose their place and their role. Had I felt differently, the Brownies wouldn’t have arrived safely. I could have left them to the Nereids.”
Ren tilted her head in acknowledgement, “We will reserve judgement for ourselves. It would be nice to have relations between our Kingdoms be more. . .amicable.”
She turned to the rest of us, “Let us go to the Tree. We have tents nearby for you to stay in, though Prince Brehm it might be a slightly tight accommodation for you as we have never had one of your. . .stature visit us.”
He chuckled, “I am sure I can make do with whatever you have.”
Nip was still hovering around Brehm, “Man, why does Aislin have to be away now of all times. She would get a kick out of meeting you.”
“Nip,” Ren admonished. “Aislin has her own path to walk. You will have the joy of filling her and the boys in. Now, please lead us.”
Chapter 17
“Prince Aece, thank you for meeting us here. This is Queen Ren, and you have met Prince Brehm, Princess Thea, and her guards Ansil and Ortheus.” Each of us nodded as Ailar introduced us. “You mentioned troubles in the sea, which will affect all of us. What can you tell us?”
“There is not very much we know. We were blocked somehow from swimming in the sea, stuck in our city for two days. We would hit an invisible wall whenever we tried to leave. Then today we could leave just fine.”
Ansil looked at Ortheus, then to Aece. “It sounds like you were locked in the same day that we were waiting for you to come with the Fairies to bring us here.”
“The same day that I saw the Nereid,” I exclaimed. “They were outside the neutral beach.”
Ailar spun to look at me, “You saw Nereid? Just off the beach? Did you tell father this?”
I shook my head, “We do not have time to talk with him about everything, and I was not sure what I had seen until I was attacked on the boat.”
“Fukka! Father needs to know about this. I do not have the time to go home and speak with him either.” Ailar started pacing.
I reached my hand out and touched Ailar’s shoulder. “You have not been home in some time, Ailar. In fact, you probably do not know half of what has happened in the past year. That can wait for a time, but Da is not well. I,” I stopped as emotions choked me. “I do not know how much longer we will have him.”
Da and I did not see eye to eye on so many things, but the idea of not seeing him again, of not being able to feel his arms around me, hurt. I have so many questions still for him, questions I did not have time for before leaving. Maybe it was wrong to rush leaving and we should have pushed it back a day or two and asked him. I hoped I never have to find out if I did make the wrong choice.
“Then, it is best if I travel today,” Ailar responded. “The sooner I get to the Selkie Kingdom, the sooner I can return to father’s side.”
“Ailar, you will make a fine King one day, though I pray that time is in the distant future.” Ren remarked. “I do not know what aid we can give you on your journey, the other Kingdoms are not safe for the Fairy folk. But I will ask if any storm, wind, or water Fairies are willing to travel with you.”
“Queen Ren,” Aece spoke up, “I appreciate the gesture, but it will be much faster and safer for us to travel as Nokke, pulling a seachair that Prince Ailar may use. We can
swim in the shallows that way, avoiding the Qalupalik pass.” He turned to Ailar, “If you are ready, we can travel as soon as my men can build a seachair.”
Brehm had been quiet until now, “I do not wish to step on toes, as I am new to this group. But there has been unrest in the Nereid’s who ride in our boats. I do not travel with one personally, preferring to pit myself against the elements without the aid of others. But I listen to what is being said on the wharfs. It isn’t good for any of us, but I never took it seriously until now.”
He looked around at each of us, he had our attention. “Do you know the history of the Nereids?”
I shook my head and noticed that the others were responding in similar fashions. Ren just smiled and lets Brehm speak. I got the feeling that she was older than she appeared.
“Once long ago, when the Gods walked the plane with us, the land, sea, and air were at war with themselves. The gods used the creatures and elements as they wished, flinging them here and there. One god, though, was tired of the wars, he wanted peace and time with his beautiful wife. So, he granted his daughters power of his element, taking it under control so that no God could use it against him. His domain was the sea.”
“Nereids,” I whispered and Brehm nodded.
“Yes, his daughters are Nereids. Half god and half nymph. They live longer than any other race in our realm, and their beauty lasts until right before their death. Over the centuries they have lost much of their power, and they want it back. They want to rule all the waterways, not just the open sea where their castle resides. And as the Nokken discovered yesterday, they have the power to do it.”
We all stared quietly at the sea, each thinking our own thoughts on what this meant, if the Nereid were not held in control. We would be left to the Bog, with no trading partners. The Fairies would be stuck on their Islands, never able to leave. The Selkie would no longer be free to swim.
“How do you stop a demi-god?” I whispered. For that is what they were, half God, half nymph.
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